49 CFR 385.308 - What may cause an expedited action?

(a) A new entrant that commits any of the following actions, identified through roadside inspections or by any other means, may be subjected to an expedited safety audit or a compliance review or may be required to submit a written response demonstrating corrective action:

The NPRM “Carrier Safety Fitness Determination,” RIN 2126-AB11, published on January 21, 2016 (81 FR 3562), is withdrawn as of March 23, 2017.

49 CFR Parts 350, 365, 385, 386, 387, and 395

Summary

FMCSA withdraws its January 21, 2016, notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM), which proposed a revised methodology for issuance of a safety fitness determination (SFD) for motor carriers. The new methodology would have determined when a motor carrier is not fit to operate commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) in or affecting interstate commerce based on the carrier's on-road safety data; an investigation; or a combination of on-road safety data and investigation information. FMCSA had recently announced that, rather than move to a final rule, a Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (SNPRM) would be the next step in the rulemaking process. However, after reviewing the record in this matter, FMCSA withdraws the NPRM and cancels the plans to develop a Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. The Agency must receive the Correlation Study from the National Academies of Science, as required by the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, assess whether and, if so, what corrective actions are advisable, and complete additional analysis before determining whether further rulemaking action is necessary to revise the safety fitness determination process.

Effective Dates: This rule is effective January 14, 2017. Comment Dates: Petitions for reconsideration must be received by February 16, 2017.

49 CFR Parts 360, 365, 366, 368, 385, 387, and 390

Summary

The FMCSA suspends its regulations requiring existing interstate motor carriers, freight forwarders, brokers, intermodal equipment providers (IEPs), hazardous materials safety permit (HMSP) applicants, and cargo tank facilities under FMCSA jurisdiction to submit required registration and biennial update information to the Agency via a new electronic on-line Unified Registration System (URS). During this suspension, entities needing to file will follow the same procedures and forms used to submit information to FMCSA as they do today.

FMCSA amends its regulations by making technical corrections throughout. The Agency is making minor changes to correct errors and omissions, ensure conformity with Office of the Federal Register style guidelines, update cross references, and improve clarity and consistency of certain regulatory provisions. Further, this set of amendments removes all remaining instances of the term “common carrier” and “contract carrier” as required by the ICC Termination Act (ICCTA) and the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU). This rule does not make any substantive changes to the affected regulations, except to remove obsolete provisions.

Effective Dates: The effective of this rule is July 28, 2016. The effective date of the rule published at 80 FR 63695 (October 21, 2015), is delayed until January 14, 2017, and §§ 365.T106, 368.T3, and 390.T200 are effective until January 13, 2017. The corrections to the rule published October 21, 2015 (80 FR 63695), are effective on January 14, 2017. The effective date of the rule published at 78 FR 52608 (August 23, 2013) is further delayed until January 14, 2017. Compliance Dates: The compliance date for the rule published at 80 FR 63695 (October 21, 2015), is delayed until January 14, 2017, and new applicants must comply with §§ 365.T106, 368.T3 or 390.T200 (as applicable) until January 13, 2017; private hazardous material carriers and exempt for-hire carriers must comply with § 387.19 or § 387.43 (as applicable) by April 14, 2017; and all entities must comply with § 366.2 by April 14, 2017.

49 CFR Parts 360, 365, 366, 368, 385, 387, 390 and 392

Summary

FMCSA is correcting the effective and compliance dates for its August 23, 2013, Unified Registration System (URS) final rule, as revised on October 21, 2015. The 2013 URS final rule was issued to improve the registration process for motor carriers, property brokers, freight forwarders, Intermodal Equipment Providers (IEPs), hazardous materials safety permit (HMSP) applicants, and cargo tank facilities required to register with FMCSA, and streamline the existing Federal registration processes to ensure the Agency can more efficiently track these entities. The October 21, 2015 final rule made slight revisions to the 2013 rule and delayed the effective dates of that rule. This final rule corrects the effective and compliance dates, revised in 2015, and corrects regulatory provisions that have not yet gone into effect, as well as several temporary sections that are in effect already, to allow FMCSA additional time to complete the information technology (IT) systems work.

Effective June 17, 2016. The incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in the rule is approved by the Director of the Federal Register in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51 as of June 17, 2016.

49 CFR Parts 385

Summary

FMCSA amends its Hazardous Materials Safety Permits rules to update the current incorporation by reference of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance's (CVSA) “North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria and Level VI Inspection Procedures and Out-of-Service Criteria for Commercial Highway Vehicles Transporting Transuranics and Highway Route Controlled Quantities of Radioactive Materials as defined in 49 CFR part 173.403.” Currently the rules reference the April 1, 2015, edition of the out-of-service criteria and, through this final rule, FMCSA incorporates the April 1, 2016, edition.

FMCSA is extending the initial comment period for the proposed rulemaking published on January 21, 2016 (81 FR 3562). You must submit comments by May 23, 2016, and reply comments on or before June 23, 2016.

49 CFR Parts 350, 365, 385, 386, 387, and 395

Summary

FMCSA extends the public comment period for the Agency's notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that published on January 21, 2016. This NPRM concerns the proposals to the current methodology for issuance of safety fitness determinations (SFD) for motor carriers. The Agency extends the deadline for the submission of initial comments to May 23, 2016. Reply comments will be due on or before June 23, 2016. In addition, FMCSA corrects the title and date of an American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) study report that the NPRM cited about the Agency's Safety Measurement System (SMS).

FMCSA will be accepting both initial comments and reply comments in response to this NPRM. Send your initial comments on or before March 21, 2016 and reply comments on or before April 20, 2016.

49 CFR Parts 350, 365, 385, 386, 387, and 395

Summary

FMCSA proposes to amend the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) to revise the current methodology for issuance of a safety fitness determination (SFD) for motor carriers. The proposed new methodologies would determine when a motor carrier is not fit to operate commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) in or affecting interstate commerce based on the carrier's on-road safety data in relation to five of the Agency's seven Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories (BASICs); an investigation; or a combination of on-road safety data and investigation information. The intended effect of this action is to more effectively use FMCSA data and resources to identify unfit motor carriers and to remove them from the Nation's roadways.

Effective Date: February 16, 2016. Compliance Date: December 18, 2017. Petitions for Reconsideration: The deadline for submitting petitions for reconsideration is January 15, 2016. The incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in the regulations is approved by the Director of the Office of the Federal Register as of February 16, 2016.

49 CFR Parts 385, 386, 390, and 395

Summary

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) amends the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) to establish: Minimum performance and design standards for hours-of-service (HOS) electronic logging devices (ELDs); requirements for the mandatory use of these devices by drivers currently required to prepare HOS records of duty status (RODS); requirements concerning HOS supporting documents; and measures to address concerns about harassment resulting from the mandatory use of ELDs. The requirements for ELDs will improve compliance with the HOS rules.

Effective Dates: The effective date of this rule is September 30, 2016, except for §§ 365.T106, 368.T3, and 390.T200, which are effective from December 12, 2015 through September 29, 2016. The effective dates of the rule published at 78 FR 52608 (August 23, 2013) are delayed until September 30, 2016. The withdrawal of Instruction #1 from the correction published at 78 FR 63100 (October 23, 2013) is effective October 21, 2015. Compliance Dates: The compliance date for this rule is September 30, 2016, except that: New applicants must comply with §§ 365.T106, 368.T3 or 390.T200 (as applicable) from December 12, 2015 through September 29, 2016; private hazardous material carriers and exempt for-hire carriers must comply with §§ 387.19 or 387.43 (as applicable) by December 31, 2016; and all entities must comply with § 366.2 by December 31, 2016. Petitions for reconsideration must be received by November 20, 2015.

49 CFR Parts 360, 365, 366, 368, 385, 387, 390 and 392

Summary

FMCSA delays the effective and compliance dates for its August 23, 2013, Unified Registration System (URS) final rule. Because FMCSA changes the effective date (the actual date when the regulatory text that appears in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) will be changed) and makes technical corrections and conforming amendments to the 2013 regulatory text, the Agency has determined that it is in the best interest of the regulated entities, our State partners and the general public to present the full text of the sections affected. The 2013 URS final rule was issued to improve the registration process for motor carriers, property brokers, freight forwarders, Intermodal Equipment Providers (IEPs), hazardous materials safety permit (HMSP) applicants and cargo tank facilities required to register with FMCSA, and streamline the existing Federal registration processes to ensure the Agency can more efficiently track these entities. Today's final rule delays the implementation of the 2013 final rule in order to allow FMCSA additional time to complete the information technology (IT) systems work required to fully implement that rule.

FMCSA amends its regulations by making technical corrections and ministerial corrections throughout title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), subtitle B, chapter III. The Agency is making minor changes to correct errors and omissions, ensure conformity with Office of the Federal Register style guidelines, update cross references, restore an inadvertent deletion of the reference to an Underwriters Laboratories' standard, and improve clarity and consistency of certain regulatory provisions. This rule does not make any substantive changes to the affected regulations, except to remove one obsolete provision.

The changes to the enforcement policy will take effect on August 18, 2015.

49 CFR Part 385

Summary

Section 33014 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) required the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to conduct a study and submit a report to Congress on the implementation of the DOT Hazardous Materials Safety Permit (HMSP) program. DOT completed the study and submitted a report to Congress in March 2014. This document announces implementation of two of the six recommendations in the report to Congress: Fully utilize the Safety Measurement System (SMS) as part of the HMSP review process and institute an ongoing requirement to conduct compliance reviews for HMSP motor carriers with insufficient data to utilize SMS. These recommendations are being implemented under the existing Safety Fitness Procedure regulations. FMCSA will use SMS scores to provide enhanced oversight of HMSP holders, to identify poor-performing carriers for a safety fitness compliance review, and to provide grounds for suspension or revocation. Both of these processes afford the motor carrier the right to administrative review and the opportunity to present corrective action.

Effective June 18, 2015. The incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in the rule is approved by the Director of the Federal Register in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51 as of June 18, 2015.

49 CFR Parts 385

Summary

FMCSA amends its Hazardous Materials Safety Permits rules to update the current incorporation by reference of the “North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria and Level VI Inspection Procedures and Out-of-Service Criteria for Commercial Highway Vehicles Transporting Transuranics and Highway Route Controlled Quantities of Radioactive Materials as defined in 49 CFR part 173.403.” Currently the rules reference the April 1, 2014, edition of the out-of-service criteria and, through this final rule, FMCSA incorporates the April 1, 2015, edition.

The FMCSA specifies inflation adjustments to civil penalty amounts assessed to those who violate the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) and Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMRs). Some of these adjustments are required by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 (Adjustment Act), as amended by the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996 (DCIA). Most of the civil penalties were last adjusted for inflation in 2007, and some have not been changed since 2003. Other changes to the civil penalties were mandated by Congress in the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21). This final rule ensures that FMCSA's civil penalties are consistent with the applicable statutes.

Effective October 2, 2014. The incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in the rule is approved by the Director of the Federal Register in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51 as of October 2, 2014.

FMCSA amends its regulations by making technical corrections throughout title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), subtitle B, chapter III. The Agency is making minor changes to correct errors and omissions, ensure conformity with Office of the Federal Register style guidelines, update references, and improve clarity and consistency of certain regulatory provisions. This rule does not make any substantive changes to the affected regulations.

FMCSA is extending the comment period for the supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking published on March 28, 2014 (79 FR 17656). You must submit comments by June 26, 2014.

49 CFR Parts 385, 386, 390, and 395

Summary

FMCSA extends the public comment period for the Agency's March 28, 2014, supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking (SNPRM) concerning the Electronic Logging Devices (ELD) and Hours of Service Supporting Documents rulemaking.

Effective May 15, 2014. The incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in the rule is approved by the Director of the Federal Register in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51 as of May 15, 2014.

49 CFR Part 385

Summary

FMCSA amends its Hazardous Materials Safety Permits rules to update the current incorporation by reference of the “North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria and Level VI Inspection Procedures and Out-of-Service Criteria for Commercial Highway Vehicles Transporting Transuranics and Highway Route Controlled Quantities of Radioactive Materials as defined in 49 CFR Part 173.403.” Currently the rules reference the April 1, 2013, edition of the out-of-service criteria and through this final rule, FMCSA incorporates the April 1, 2014, edition.

FMCSA proposes to adopt regulations that prohibit motor carriers, shippers, receivers, or transportation intermediaries from coercing drivers to operate commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) in violation of certain provisions of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs)—including drivers' hours-of-service limits and the commercial driver's license (CDL) regulations and associated drug and alcohol testing rules—or the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMRs). In addition, the NPRM would prohibit anyone who operates a CMV in interstate commerce from coercing a driver to violate the commercial regulations. This NPRM includes procedures for drivers to report incidents of coercion to FMCSA, rules of practice the Agency would follow in response to allegations of coercion, and describes penalties that may be imposed on entities found to have coerced drivers. This proposed rulemaking is authorized by section 32911 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) and the Motor Carrier Safety Act of 1984 (MCSA), as amended.

Comments must be received on or before May 27, 2014. Comments sent to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on the collection of information must be received by OMB on or before May 27, 2014. Before publishing a final rule, FMCSA will submit to the Office of the Federal Register publications listed in the rule for approval of the publications' incorporation by reference.

49 CFR Parts 385, 386, 390, and 395

Summary

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) proposes amendments to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) to establish: Minimum performance and design standards for hours-of-service (HOS) electronic logging devices (ELDs); requirements for the mandatory use of these devices by drivers currently required to prepare HOS records of duty status (RODS); requirements concerning HOS supporting documents; and measures to address concerns about harassment resulting from the mandatory use of ELDs. This rulemaking supplements the Agency's February 1, 2011, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) and addresses issues raised by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in its 2011 decision vacating the Agency's April 5, 2010, final rule concerning ELDs as well as subsequent statutory developments. The proposed requirements for ELDs would improve compliance with the HOS rules.

FMCSA amends its regulations to enable the Agency to suspend or revoke the operating authority registration of for-hire motor carriers that show egregious disregard for safety compliance, permit persons who have shown egregious disregard for safety compliance to exercise controlling influence over their operations, or operate multiple entities under common control to conceal noncompliance with safety regulations. These amendments implement section 4113 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), as amended by section 32112 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), and are designed to enhance the safety of commercial motor vehicle (CMV) operations on our nation's highways.

2013-10-01; vol. 78 # 190 - Tuesday, October 1, 2013

78 FR 60226 - Amendments To Implement Certain Provisions of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21)

Effective Date: This final rule is effective Tuesday, October 1, 2013. Petitions for Reconsideration must be received by the Agency no later than December 2, 2013.

49 CFR Parts 350, 381, 383, 384, 385, 386, 387, and 392

Summary

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) adopts, as final, certain regulations required by the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century surface transportation reauthorization legislation. The majority of these statutory changes went into effect on October 1, 2012, while others will go into effect on October 1, 2013. It is necessary to make conforming changes to ensure that FMCSA's regulations are current and consistent with the applicable statutes. Adoption of the rules is a nondiscretionary ministerial action that can be taken without issuing a notice of proposed rulemaking and receiving public comment, in accordance with the good cause exception available to Federal agencies under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).

This final rule makes technical corrections throughout FMCSA's regulations. The Agency is making minor editorial changes to correct errors and omissions, ensure conformity with Office of the Federal Register style, and improve clarity. This rule does not make any substantive changes to the affected parts of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs).

Effective September 13, 2013. The incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in the rule is approved by the Director of the Federal Register as of September 13, 2013.

49 CFR Part 385

Summary

FMCSA amends its Hazardous Materials Safety Permits rules to update the current incorporation by reference of the “North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria and Level VI Inspection Procedures and Out-of-Service Criteria for Commercial Highway Vehicles Transporting Transuranics and Highway Route Controlled Quantities of Radioactive Materials as defined in 49 CFR Part 173.403.” The rules currently reference the April 1, 2012, edition of the out-of-service criteria and through this final rule, FMCSA incorporates the April 1, 2013, edition.

Effective Dates: The final rule is effective October 23, 2015, except for § 390.19 (amendatory instruction number 55) and § 392.9b (amendatory instruction 61), which are effective November 1, 2013, and except for § 366.2 (amendatory instruction 19), which is effective April 25, 2016. Compliance Dates: The compliance date for this final rule is October 23, 2015, except that the compliance date for §§ 390.19 and 392.9b is November 1, 2013, and the compliance date for § 366.2 is April 25, 2016. Petitions for reconsideration must be received by September 23, 2013.

49 CFR Parts 360, 365, 366, 368, 385, 387, 390 and 392

Summary

The FMCSA amends its regulations to require interstate motor carriers, freight forwarders, brokers, intermodal equipment providers (IEPs), hazardous materials safety permit (HMSP) applicants, and cargo tank facilities under FMCSA jurisdiction to submit required registration and biennial update information to the Agency via a new electronic on-line Unified Registration System (URS). FMCSA establishes fees for the registration system, discloses the cumulative information to be collected in the URS, and provides a centralized cross-reference to existing safety and commercial regulations necessary for compliance with the registration requirements. The final rule implements statutory provisions in the ICC Termination Act of 1995 (ICCTA) and the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users, 2005 (SAFETEA-LU). The URS will streamline the registration process and serve as a clearinghouse and depository of information on, and identification of, motor carriers, brokers, freight forwarders, IEPs, HMSP applicants, and cargo tank facilities required to register with FMCSA.

FMCSA proposes amendments to its regulations that would enable the Agency to suspend or revoke the operating authority registration of motor carriers that have shown egregious disregard for safety compliance or that permit persons who have shown egregious disregard for safety compliance to act on their behalf. These amendments would implement section 4113 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) as amended by section 32112 of the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), and are designed to enhance the safety of commercial motor vehicle (CMV) operations on our nation's highways.

The FMCSA amends the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations to remove the provision indicating that the Agency will consider a 10-day extension of the 45-day period after which passenger and hazardous materials carriers must cease operation after receiving a proposed unsatisfactory safety rating. The Agency previously discontinued this practice as a matter of policy and now amends the regulation to be consistent with the policy and the statutory language concerning this matter. Although FMCSA will continue to review requests for upgrades of proposed unsatisfactory safety rating for such carriers, the Agency will no longer grant extensions to the 45-day period.

This final rule makes technical corrections throughout title 49 CFR subtitle B, chapter III. The Agency is making minor editorial changes to add revised delegations of authority from the Secretary of Transportation (Secretary), correct errors and omissions, and improve clarity. This rule does not make any substantive changes to the affected parts of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs).

This decision became effective on July 20, 2012 for expedited action notices and will become effective on August 20, 2012 for safety audit failure notices.

49 CFR Part 385

Summary

FMCSA provides notice of the Agency's policy that it must receive a new entrant motor carrier's evidence of corrective action within 15 days of the date of a new entrant safety audit failure notice or within 10 days of the date of an expedited action notice. A new entrant motor carrier that does not submit evidence of corrective action within these time periods could have its registration revoked and be placed out of service.

As stated in 49 CFR 385.407, in order for FMCSA to issue a hazardous materials safety permit (HMSP), a motor carrier must not have a crash rate, or driver, vehicle, or hazardous materials (HM) Out-of-Service (OOS) rate in the top 30 percentile of the national average. The current method for determining the qualifying crash and OOS rates under this rule, in effect since the inception of the HMSP program, utilizes two years of inspection data from FMCSA's Motor Carrier Management Information System (MCMIS) to calculate the OOS rates representing the top or worst-performing 30 percent of the national average. FMCSA has been recalculating the threshold crash and OOS rates every two years, using MCMIS data from the preceding two years. This notice of amendment explains the new methodology the Agency will begin to use to calculate the threshold crash rate and driver, vehicle, and HM OOS rates that qualify or disqualify a carrier for HMSP issuance. The revised methodology uses eight years of data from MCMIS (data from 2003 to 2010) to determine the national average for eligible crash and OOS thresholds that qualify for an HMSP. These rates will remain static rather than change every two years. The Agency decided that crash and OOS rates, which remain static over a longer period of time, will improve safety by providing a clearly identifiable standard for industry compliance and minimize the burden on motor carriers and the HM industry by allowing more appropriate measures that ensure eligibility for the HMSP. The calculations of crash and OOS rates in this notice of amendment will be implemented immediately and posted to FMCSA's Web site. These new static rates will remain in effect until further notice.

Notice of regulatory guidance and applicability of ``tank vehicle'' definition.

Effective date for the regulatory guidance: May 24, 2012. Compliance date for the May, 9, 2011 final rule: States must be in compliance with the requirements in subpart B of Part 384 (49 CFR part 384) by July 8, 2014.

49 CFR Parts 383, 384, and 385

Summary

On May 9, 2011, FMCSA published a final rule titled “Commercial Driver's License Testing and Commercial Learner's Permit Standards.” Among other things, the rule revised the definition of “tank vehicle.” The change required additional drivers, primarily those transporting certain tanks temporarily attached to the commercial motor vehicle (CMV), to obtain a tank vehicle endorsement on their commercial driver's license (CDL). The Agency has since received numerous questions and requests for clarification. This notice responds to questions about the new definition and the compliance date for drivers to obtain the tank vehicle endorsement.

This final rule rescinds the final rule published on April 5, 2010, entitled “Electronic On-Board Recorders for Hours-of-Service Compliance” and amended by a September 13, 2010, technical amendment. This action responds to a decision of the Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit that vacated the April 2010 final rule.

This final rule repromulgates in the Code of Federal Regulations a statutory requirement that FMCSA revoke the operating authority registration of a for-hire motor carrier for failure to comply with safety fitness requirements; if the Agency determines that a motor carrier is “Unfit” based on its Safety Fitness Determination procedures, the Agency must revoke the carrier's operating authority registration. Unfit motor carriers are prohibited from operating in interstate commerce, and the Secretary of Transportation is required by statute to revoke their operating authority registration. This final rule also repromulgates several technical provisions and makes non-substantive administrative changes. These changes, initially adopted as part of the April 5, 2010, final rule entitled “Electronic On-Board Recorders for Hours-of-Service Compliance,” are necessary because, for reasons unrelated to this final rule, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit invalidated the previous rule.

FMCSA published a final rule in the Federal Register on Monday, May 9, 2011, that became effective on July 8, 2011. That final rule amended the commercial driver's license (CDL) knowledge and skills testing standards and established new minimum Federal standards for States to issue the commercial learner's permit (CLP). Since the final rule was published, FMCSA identified minor discrepancies regarding section references in existing regulatory text resulting from the final rule. This document corrects those section references.

The listening session will be held on Thursday, April 26, 2012, at the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) meeting in Bellevue, WA. The listening session will run from 1:30 p.m.-5:30 p.m., with a break between 3:30 p.m. and 4 p.m., and continue from 4 p.m.-5:30 p.m. local time, or earlier, if all participants wishing to express their views have done so.

49 CFR Parts 385, 390, and 395

Summary

FMCSA announces that it will hold a public listening session to solicit information, concepts, ideas, and comments on Electronic On-Board Recorders (EOBRs) and the issue of driver harassment. Specifically, the Agency wants to know what factors, issues, and data it should consider as it addresses the distinction between productivity and harassment: What will prevent harassment from occurring; what types of harassment already exist; how frequently and to what extent harassment happens; and how an electronic device such as an EOBR, capable of contemporaneous transmission of information to a motor carrier, will guard against (or fail to guard against) harassment. Additionally, the Agency will solicit concepts, ideas, and comments from enforcement personnel on the hours-of-service (HOS) information they would need to see on the EOBR display screen to effectively enforce the HOS rules at the roadside and the type of evidence they would need to retain in order to support issuing drivers citations for HOS violations observed during roadside inspections. This session will be held in Bellevue, Washington (WA), and will allow interested persons to present comments, views, and relevant new research that FMCSA should consider in development of Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (SNPRM). This listening session will be recorded and a transcript of the session will be placed in the docket for FMCSA's consideration. The listening session will also be webcast via the Internet and will allow for email interactivity during the webcast.

The listening session will be held on Friday, March 23, 2012, at the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, KY. The listening session will run from 10 a.m.-12 p.m., with a break between 12 p.m. and 2 p.m., and continue from 2 p.m.-4 p.m. local time, or earlier, if all participants wishing to express their views have done so.

49 CFR Parts 385, 390, and 395

Summary

FMCSA announces that it will hold a public listening session to solicit information, concepts, ideas, and comments on Electronic On-Board Recorders (EOBRs) and the issue of driver harassment. Specifically, the Agency wants to know what factors, issues, and data it should consider as it addresses the distinction between productivity and harassment: what will prevent harassment from occurring; what types of harassment already exist; how frequently and to what extent harassment happens; and how an electronic device such as an EOBR, capable of contemporaneous transmission of information to a motor carrier will guard against (or fail to guard against) harassment. This session will be held in Louisville, Kentucky (KY), and will allow interested persons to present comments, views, and relevant new research that FMCSA should consider in development of the final rule. This listening session will be recorded and a transcript of the session will be placed in the docket for FMCSA's consideration. The listening session will also be webcast via the Internet.

FMCSA announces its intent to move forward with the Electronic On-Board Recorders and Hours of Service Supporting Documents rulemaking (EOBR 2) by preparing a Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (SNPRM). To augment the Agency's efforts to obtain comprehensive data to support this SNPRM, FMCSA plans to do the following: hold listening sessions on the issue of driver harassment; task the Motor Carrier Safety Advisory Committee (MCSAC) to assist in developing material to support this rulemaking, including technical specifications for EOBRs and their potential to be used to harass drivers; and conduct research by surveying drivers, carriers, and vendors regarding harassment issues.